As
an owner of travel agencies in Windsor, Ontario, Bob was
always interested in unique destinations. When he first
came to Isla Mujeres, Mexico in May 1988, he was
impressed with the turquoise Caribbean Sea, the pure,
white-sand beaches and the laid back, friendly attitude
of the islanders. By September, Bob had invested in
property at Nautibeach Condominiums on North Beach. He
reasoned that it would be easy to sell clients trying to
escape Ontario winters on the idea of a 3-hour flight to
Cancun, with Isla as the final destination.

Less than ten days after he closed on his new property
Hurricane Gilbert, one of the most powerful hurricanes
ever recorded, struck and tourism ground to a halt for
the next two years.

I (Joyce) was born and raised in Saskatchewan but was living in
Winnipeg in 1989 when I met Bob. Bob mentioned flying to
a small island near Cancun and I remember thinking,
“I’ve read about men like you.” A few months later, on
my first visit to Isla, I, too, became smitten. We came
back every chance we could. We were true “Islaholics”.

In
1993, shortly after we were married, we moved to Isla
Mujeres and Bob became the administrator at Nautibeach
Condos. The job lasted only six months but we stayed on
and started our own rental business. It didn’t take long
for each of us to find our niche. I have always handled
the communications and reservations while Bob handles
the legal matters and is my main(tenance) man.

The business at Nautibeach grew, and to escape being on
duty 24 hours a day, we purchased the property where we
currently reside. A few years later, we expanded and
built Casitas del Mar. By 2006, we sold our remaining
interests in Nautibeach and now find ourselves
pleasantly occupied with renting and maintaining our
little piece of paradise.

A few years ago we resumed our Canadian residency
and now spend six months near our family and the rest of the
year here on Isla. We really do have the best of both
worlds.